The Childhood of Jesus
The Gospel of James
Biographical Gospel of the Lord
- Chapter 213 -
Joseph Repents His Mistake
WHEN THE LITTLE CHILD and James were outside, Mary said to Joseph,
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'Listen, my dear husband and father Joseph, sometimes you are really a bit too strict towards the divine Child!
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What could one otherwise expect of a normal child aged two and one-third years?
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Who would subject Him to such stern discipline?
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But you are as strict in your discipline against the Child of all children as if He were of a heaven only knows ripe age!
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See, that seems very unreasonable to me. Even though you love Him beyond measure now and then, you are sometimes so strict with Him as if you had no love towards Him at all!'
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This tone of Mary immediately found an echo in Cyrenius, Jonathan, Tullia, Eudokia and Maronius Pilla.
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And Cyrenius in addition protested to Joseph, 'Friend, sometimes I really do not know what to make of you!
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First you teach me to recognize the most high Deity in the little Child Himself -
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right after which you again demand of the little Child that He should worship a God!
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Tell me, how does that harmonize? If the little Child is the Divine Being Himself, how then should He pray to a God? - Does your demand not seem a bit absurd to you?
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I will make the supposition the little Child were not what I now quite without question recognize Him to be and always worship Him as such.
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Then I would say, that coming from a true friend of children, your request seems a bit foolish!
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For who will demand a serious prayer of a child nine quarter years old?
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For that reason you will surely see my point of view, when I as a pagan say to you:
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'Friend, you must be struck with a three-fold blindness if you are not always able to esteem the little Child at His true worth!
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Truly, this time I certainly will not eat a bite if the little Child with His James will not be present here at my side!
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Is it not even ridiculous if you entreat the Lord God for a blessing upon the food and then order the same Lord and God away from the table, because He did not pray according to your habitual manner?
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That is surely why the little Child also asked you just to whom He should pray, and to whom you pray, and also to whom James should have prayed.
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But as I see it, you do not seem to have noticed what the little Child wanted to tell you therewith!'
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These quite to the point remarks went straight to Joseph's heart, and he went outside to get the little Child as well as James,
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But there he called James and the little Child in vain, for both had quickly gone away - to where, no one knew.